egtabite 19 – Flood Emergency Radio

The Concept

In this week's egtabite we bring you an example of radio being once again a medium able to react and adjust quickly to unusual circumstances. In light of the recent shutting down of the Greek public broadcaster ERT by the country's government, this case from Hungary highlights the remarkable public service value that media can deliver in times of crisis.

As floods hit central Europe earlier this month, both residents and those involved in the protection and rescue operations faced a tough challenge to take nationwide defensive measures. To support these efforts, egta’s Hungarian member Media Support and Asset Management Fund (MTVA) together with National Media and Info Communications Authority (NMHH) launched a special Flood Emergency Radio, Árvízvédelmi Rádió.

The station started its transmission on nationwide frequencies on 9 June 2013 at 8 am, supplying the public with non-stop news, reports and up-to-date information regarding the protective measures taken against the flooding of the river Danube. It will broadcast for 30 days, 24 hours a day, using frequencies that were formerly licensed to the commercial radio Neo FM. The temporary station will provide up-to-date and authentic information, with content delivered across other media as well.

This is part of a nationwide effort, involving volunteers, emergency and military services, the most important goal of which is to ensure that the emergency situation declared by the government does not turn into a tragic catastrophe. Delivering accurate and timely information to those at risk is a key part of this effort.

Why does this matter to egta members?

The rapid introduction of this new national FM radio station by MTVA and NMHH is a timely reminder of some of radio’s core strengths:

» It is highly relevant to listeners and reaches almost the whole population daily
» It is flexible and responsive
» It is at the heart of communities, delivering accurate information in times of need and entertainment all year round

Whilst the situation in Hungary is unusual and unexpected, this initiative demonstrates that radio is the perfect real-time medium. Plus the growing phenomenon of event radios to support music festivals, artist tours and brand campaigns on broadcast and online platforms offers radios and their sales houses a chance to increase their relevance to listeners and bring in incremental advertising revenues.

	Target: Radio
	Background info
Please click on the links below to access the relevant documents: » Flood emergency Radio frequencies (please click here)
	Radio transmission
Please click here to stream the radio.
	Next events
egta Annual Marketing & Sales Directors' Meeting Thursday, 10 October 2013 Helsinki
egta Radio Marketing & Pricing Meeting Thursday, 28 November 2013 Zurich

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